Unionized reporters and editors at NBC News staged a daylong walkout on Thursday in protest of recent layoffs and the network’s handling of ongoing contract bargaining.
About 40 staffers from the unit gathered out front of the network’s 30 Rockefeller Plaza headquarters, in a gated-off section of the West 49th St. sidewalk, holding signs labeling NBC as “Nothing But Criminals” and referencing lyrics from Taylor Swift’s recent album Midnights, such as “Karma’s gonna track you down.” Staffers were also accompanied by an inflatable “Scabby The Rat”—a common prop for union protests—and a giant check railing against “stolen wages.”
Union leaders first promised the walkout earlier this week, specifically citing NBC’s decision to lay off seven unit members last month without notifying the union. The NBC Guild has since filed multiple unfair labor practice charges with the National Labor Relations Board, though it has grown impatient in waiting for a resolution.
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NBC News wrote of the protests in a statement: “We are disappointed by the NewsGuild’s continued attempts to misrepresent the facts while we work in good faith with them to reach an agreement.” A source familiar with NBC’s operations said the network had contingency plans in place if the walkout went through.
“Today, I’m joining over 200 NBC News, MSNBC and TODAY Show journalists walking off the job to protest management’s decision to illegally lay off seven unit members and strip several others of their union protections without bargaining,” read one unit member’s out-of-office email reply when reached by The Daily Beast on Thursday morning. “NBC must stop breaking the law, reinstate our colleagues and let us all get back to work.”
While some MSNBC staffers participated in the walkout, the MSNBC Union—which covers staffers who work only for the cable-news outlet—did not officially join. “They have encouraged us to wear our union shirts and resist picking up any additional work for those on strike,” one MSNBC producer told The Daily Beast. The MSNBC employees who did join the picket line were likely those who are part of the NBC Guild and work for the larger news network.
Tate James, a video editor at NBC News and chair of NBC’s guild, told The Daily Beast he has gotten texts of support from notable NBC personalities, though he would not name them due to their lack of public statements. He also claimed some MSNBC guests decided against coming to 30 Rock on Thursday in solidarity with the unit, but he also would not name them.
“I don't want to put somebody in a difficult situation publicly,” James added.
He also said the walkout prompted an internal email Thursday morning that served as management’s first direct acknowledgment of last month’s layoffs. In it, they said the layoffs were due to a budget reallocation and claimed they were not illegal, James said, though management hadn’t notified the unit prior to the layoffs or bargained with it about them.
“We’ve heard about it just through rumor or word of mouth,” James said. “NBC has refused to really address it, so today they addressed it.”
In the memo, which was obtained and reviewed by The Daily Beast, NBC claimed that a change in business strategy made the layoffs legal and, as a result, management did not need to inform the union. However, NBC claimed it had “repeatedly tried to engage the Union about the impact of these layoffs, such as severance and benefits continuation, on its members.”
The NBC walkout follows similar walkouts from unionized employees at both The New York Times and Reuters last year. While a majority of Times union members walked out, the unit is still locked in bargaining negotiations months later, while Reuters’ guild secured a contract nearly five months after its walkout.
James acknowledged that it was “scary” to walk off the job for a day, but he said Thursday’s walkout should demonstrate to management that, even if negotiations remained prolonged, they would continue to stand firm for their asks, which include a “just cause” clause for firings and voluntary buyouts before layoffs.
“They’ve just been expecting us to agree to subpar terms below the bar of what they have already agreed to for other unions in the building,” James said. “Today shows them that our unit’s not gonna stand for that. We want to be treated with respect in the same way that they have treated other unions that they've made deals with in the past.”
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